 BY DOUG GRAHAM | Staff writer Nonprofit Baton Rouge-based Blue Cross, which insures 1.9 million Louisiana residents, wants to reorganize into a for-profit company that could then be purchased by Indianapolis-based Elevance Health. The proposed $2.5 billion deal came under fire earlier this year before Blue Cross and Blue Shield tabled it. Officials with Blue Cross and Elevance said they are optimistic the sale will be finalized during the first quarter of the new year.
Louisiana has some of the worst outcomes for infants in the developed world, including high infant mortality rates driven by an abundance of preterm births and low birthweight babies. A new report out this week says the state should strongly consider expanding voluntary home-visiting programs for families with newborns. Just 6% of all families with newborns in the state have received such visits, according to the report.
LSU women's basketball coach Kim Mulkey wants center Aalyah Del Rosario "to play like a Mack Truck." Meaning: She wants the freshman from the Bronx, New York, to leave her quiet, humble disposition behind and bring a stronger, tougher, meaner side to the court. | 
